The Moreland initiative was a result of Council’s participation in the 2005/06 Local Economic Development (LED) Pilot Project, which was managed by ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability-Australia/New Zealand (ICLEI-A/NZ) and funded by the Department of Sustainability and Environment, Victorian Government. The LED Pilot Project involved six Victorian CCP Plus councils working on a variety of initiatives to explore the tangible links between greenhouse gas reduction and local economic development.

Through engaging with real estate agents in the municipality and raising their awareness of the multiple benefits of ‘energy smart homes’ the project aims to:

• Turn real estate agents into advocates (to buyers and sellers) of the benefits of energy smart features in houses and apartments;
• Encourage home owners to include energy smart features in home renovations or capital investments prior to selling; and
• Encourage home buyers to value the energy savings features of homes when making their purchasing decision.

The LED Pilot Project involved Council conducting a ‘gap analysis’ of its vision, strategies, policies, processes and community emissions profile as these relate to environmental (and in particular greenhouse gas reduction) and economic development outcomes.

Moreland City Council chose to focus on drivers to reduce emissions in the residential sector. In part this reflects Moreland’s high percentage of established homes and complements other initiatives such as the Moreland STEPS tool and the 5-star Home Renovators Service operated by Moreland Energy Foundation Ltd (MEFL). The environment and economic development units within Moreland City Council partnered with Moreland Energy Foundation Ltd to design and implement the project.

Council worked with local real estate agents to confirm the scope of the project.  Through this consultation, the project team decided to produce a promotional brochure to be used by real estate agents that shares the benefits of energy smart homes with home owners and buyers.

The resulting Energy Smart Homes brochure, developed in close consultation with agents and the REIV, equates Energy Smart features with high quality homes, highlighting environmental, economic and lifestyle benefits. It also outlines features of Energy Smart Homes and Energy Smart services available in Moreland.

Developing real estate agents as advocates of Energy Smart Home features could have many local economic benefits:

• Home sellers of ‘Energy Smart Homes’ (and their real estate agents!) benefit from higher sale prices;
• Home buyers benefit from improved home comfort (natural light, heating and cooling) with lower running costs, plus the ‘feel good factor’ of buying and living in an ‘Energy Smart Home’;
• ‘Energy Smart Homes' and apartments will likely enjoy higher tenancy rates due to growing awareness of lower ongoing costs for tenants;
• ‘Energy Smart Home’ owners will be prepared for potential introduction of regulations relating to improved energy efficiency of existing residences;
• Local ‘green’ builders, designers, tradespeople and suppliers benefit from increased customer demand for energy efficiency features in home renovations; and
• Over time, the housing and tenancy market should move to better reflect and encourage the relative good value of  ‘Energy Smart Homes’ as compared to energy ‘guzzlers’.